Greens say No to Super Dumps

The people of Darfield shouldn't have to suffer
Christchurch's rubbish dumped on their doorstep because of
successive governments' inaction on waste reduction, says
the Green Party.

Green co-leader Rod Donald is today
attending a picnic organised by the Dump the Dump committee
at the site of the proposed Darfield superdump. Local MP
Jenny Shipley is also expected to attend.

"The only way we
will stop superdumps, such as the ones proposed for Darfield
and on the banks of the Waikato River, is for the government
to adopt a nationwide 'zero waste' strategy," Mr Donald
said.

The Greens are calling on all parties to work
together to tackle the growing waste problem.

"I'm even
happy to work with local Rakaia MP Jenny Shipley on this
issue providing she embraces zero waste rather than proposes
simply shifting the dump onto someone else's doorstep," Mr
Donald said.

"The Malvern hills are as precious to the
people of Darfield as Hagley Park is to Christchurch
residents and no-one in their right mind would dump the
city's rubbish in the middle of the park.

"We hope the
new government will provide strong leadership to achieve
zero waste and work in partnership with local government,
business and the community.

"At the end of the day,
success will only come from a change in behaviour and
attitude towards resources and the environment, in addition
to appropriate Government incentives and penalties."

The
Greens support: a shift of taxation away from incomes and
onto waste and pollution, promoting venture capital for new
Cleaner Production technologies, implementing true cost
accounting, encouraging a cradle-to-grave life cycle
production model, and making manufacturers and packagers
responsible for the costs of the final disposal of their
products, said Mr Donald. "A 'zero waste' strategy has the
added benefit of removing the uncertainty and anxiety from
the lives of those people living near the proposed rubbish
dumps," he said.

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